Shrimp peeling machine



Nov. 6, 1951 F. s. LAPEYRE ET AL 2,574,044

SHRIMP FEELING MACHINE Filed April 1. 1946 I 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 m v w) I3mm 6 3 3 FERNAND s. LAPEYRE & JAMES M. LAPEYRE I11 Nov. 6, 1951 F. s.LAPEYRE ET AL SHRIMP FEELING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 1.1946 gwuwvbobs FERNAND S. LAPEYREA 8 JAMES M. LAPEYREII] 1951 F. s.LAPEYRE ET AL V 2,574,044

SHRIMP FEELING MACHINE 5 Shee qs-Sheet 3 Filed April 1. 1946 FERNAND S.LAPEYRE 8\ JAMES M. LAPEYRE III Nov. 6, 1951 F. s. LAPEYRE ETAL2,574,044

SHRIMP FEELING MACHINE Filed April 1. 1946 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 FERNAND S.LAPEYRE 8 JAMES M. LAPEYREIII Filed April 1. 1946 SHRIMP FEELINGMACHINE.

5 Sheets-Sheet s ,FERNAND S. LAPEYRE I 81 JAMES M. LAPEYRE 111 fatenteclNov. 6, 1951 'IiapeyreFIIL Houma, La, assignors to Peelers,*Incorporate'dflHouma, La -a corporation --of Louisiana ,--ApplicationApril 1, 194s,;sriaii1t,c53,692 v ie oianii Theipresent'inventionrelates to im rovements inshrimp'peling machines, and consists inice'rtain improvements over the prior "machine illustrated and described in,our prior Patent "No. 2,429,828, granted Octobe'r28, 1947.

While the present invention has" in-genera1 the same 'objects'as stated,inthe prior application aforesaid, the present-machine offersadvantages in speed and precision of peeling "and inthe matter ofeliminating :the accumulation of (slime.

Such slime is encountere'd'on the" top portions of therollers and if'not "removedvis a 'deterrent'to proper peeling. The removal of theslime is achieved by causing the .shrimptotravel along channelsestablished: between rollers while flushing the slime, resulting fromthe peeling, with jets of water, causingdraina'ge 't'oth'e" lower endsof the rollers, which are inclined.

Unlike the machine or the fprior application, the path of the shrimp is"longitudinallyof the rollers, the axes of which'are-dispose'd. inan'inclined plane, the shrimp 'gravitationally"traveling along thelength of the rollers, as againstecross the sameas disclosed'in ourprior application 'referred'to. I

:A'further obj ect' of: the inventionand a further difference over themachine of'xthe prior.,applica'- tion lies in the arrangement ofrollers-in' two planes, resulting in the establishment'df channels alongwhichthe shrimp must travel in the course ofpeeling and whereintheyja're' held and 'confined,'the'peeling takin placesubstantially-continuously while the shrimp are on their course alongthe inclined channels.

An additional object, and difference overithe prior machine, resides'i ntheuse'o'f water .on'the upper sides of'the rollers,whichoperatesftofm'ove the, shrimp along the channels at such periods oftime when they have been released-froin1the pinching and peeling actionof the rollers, the

oscillating motion of the rollers acting'jtoftr'ans- V fer thejsh'rimpfrom onefsideof the channlto' the other in .an approximately. zig-zagpzithtas' the shrimp gravitationally proceed and are Washed down theinclined'channels. v v

A still further object ofthe inventionfresides in the use of jets ofwater to fiushfiawayj'the slime resulting from the peeling,"alongjtheupper sides oithe rollers to thepointcofdischargaat the lowerends. Afstill further object ,oftheginvention .is to controltherate oftraveler the shrimp down the inclined channels by governingtlievolumelo'f water supplied to the top portionsof the'rouers.

, v2 the'inv'ention will be more fully described'her'einafter, and willbe more particularly pointed ou'tin the "claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, whereinlike symbols refe'rto like or corresponding*parts'throughout the-"several views,

Figure 1 is a side elevation of an improved shrimp peeling machine'andfeeder as constructed in accordance" with our present invention;

Figure 2 1s aplan view of one-form-of'roller employed, With-parts brokenaway and parts shown in section; f v

Figure 31s a top plan -'view-=of the *ieeder as shown on the'line'-3-'-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is-atop plan view of the-peeler as shown on the line 4-4 inFigure 1;

Figure 5 is an end elevation "taken-on the line 5'5 in Figure-4;

Figure S'is an end elevation-citric frameand jacking adjustablearrangement with 1oarts broken away;

Figures 7- and 8 are diagrammatic views showing the shrimp-peelingoperation;

Figure 9 is-a detail-of 1 the baflie adjustment;

Fi ure 10 is an end elevation of-amodified-form of-d'rive and closedarrangement of channel;

Figure 11 is-a diagram showin the method of operation'ofthis-modified-form;

Figure 12 is an endelevation of one of the rollers rubber coated;

Figure 13 is a-iragmenta-ry modified channel arrangement;

Figure 14 is a; fragmentary perspective-view of a modified form ofmovable baffle or-paddleand "Figure 15 is afragmentary perspective viewof a modified'form of top frame.

Referring more particularly to the-drawings and'moreparticularly withreference to-Figure 5', a number of upper rollers I0, I I, 1-2, I-3, l4and I5,,are 'illustrate'd asbeing six in number and as resting upon "aseries "or' bank of lower rollers l6, 11, I8, I9, 20, 2| and 22, whichinthe-example shown in Figure 5 are seven in number. -The axes-23 and '24of these-rollers are shownas being inclined forwhich "see Figure 1whereby] a high or shrimp receiving e'nd'is provided withia low ordischarge end. j g

The'shrirnp travels down the inclin'ationin channels 25 between "thespaced upperroll'ers' Iii-l 5 and supported upon the peripherie's'oi thelower rollers Iii-=22. Ordinarily three rollers'com' stitute a unit,althoughatany-particular time the bottom or power roller'andone .oftheup'pe'r rollers cooperates to perform the peeling function.

top plan of the With the foregoing and other objects in View, I When'the lowerpower roller is rotating clockunit is completed by a singlebottom roller 18 which is disposed directly beneath the channel 25. Theupper rollers rest upon thelowerlrollers so that crotches 21, 29 areprovided for-eachmnit,

where the upper pair of rollers H, l2 contact and engage with pressureupon the upper side portions of the single roller l8; Other crotches,""

bights or nips are shown at 28 and 36 for adjacent rollers. It will beunderstood that this unit of three rollers may be repeated as many timesas desired. In Figure 7 it will be apparent that the upper roller I2 ofthe unit ll, l2, 18 also forms a member of the adjacent unit l2, I3; Hi.In this way any number of inclined channels may be provided for adesired capacity of machine.

As shown in Figures '7 and 8 the various rollers are adapted to beoscillated back and forth in the directions of thearrows 3| and 32. Inthese figures 33 represents the rawjshrimp or the peeled meat in thechannel 25, while the, hulls or shells which pass through the crotchesandare pinched from the meat are indicated at 34 as dropping throughthedischarge gaps 26 between adjacent lower rollers 16, [9.

In other words a unitmay consist of the rollers ll, [2 and IS, the axes23 and 24 of which are in a triangular arrangement with the base of thetriangle uppermost and its apex pointed. downwardly. v

This arrangement provides the channels 25 which are closed at theirbottoms by the lower group of rollers. to2l and at both sides by theuppergroup-of rollers ID to 15, but are openat their top portions toreceive the shrimp therein.

The rollers may be supported in any suitable manner. As an'example theupper rollers ill-i5 may .be journaled in a top frame 35 while the lowerrollers 6-22 may be journaled ina lower frame or bed 36. The top frame35 is connected with the lower bed 35 by m'eans of threaded rods 31which are pivoted at 38 to the lower bed'Sfi. Pairs of nuts 39 and 40are run upon the threaded rods 31.] These threaded rods are arranged atcorner portions of the frame, and coil springs 4| are wound aboutthethreaded rods 31 between the upper nuts 39 and abutmentsfl' carried bythe corner braces 43 which are parts of the top frame 35' The lower nuts46 are threaded on portions of the threaded rods 31 below the cornerbraces 43. V

Horizontally adjustable screws 44 are threaded through blocks 45 on the:lowr frame or bed :35 and have heads 46 by which they may be rotatedand'thus' shifted back and forth in the blocks 45. The inner ends of theadjusting screws. 46 contact the journals or the journal blocks 58and 59of the end rollers l6 and 22 of the lower bank as shown in Figure 5wherebyto prevent these rollers 15 and 22 and consequently the entireas;

sembly from spreading laterally. By adjusting these screws 44 the widthof the channels 25 and gaps 25 may be diminished or enlarged in width.

As shown in'Figure 5 the journals 23 of the" electricfor other motor 14.

upper rollers Ill-l5 are slidable in horizontally elongated slots 250 inthe top frame 35 while the journal blocks 202 for the journals 24 of thelower set of rollers l6-22 slide in horizontally elongated recesses 26!made through the upper edge of the lower bed 36. When pressure isapplied by the screws 44 the lower set of rollers l6- 22 U will v besqueezed together, thus diminishing the horizontal widths of thedischarge gaps 26. The upper set of rollers Ill-l5 will be enabled toride up as the top frame 35 is adjustable on the rods '31; The upper setof rollers Ell-I5 will also bemoyed closer together by this action inorder to lesse'n' gthe widths of the channels 25. When ,th e lpwer driverollers "5-22 are moved closer together shorter cables 62 will besubstituted or conventional forms of take-ups may be included in thecables'for the purpose of adjusting the lengths thereof.

As shown more particularly in Figure l, the lower bed 36 and thus the,top frame 35 which is carried thereby' as a 'unit'is'pivoted to theframework 56 by the pivots or studs 4T,'(Figure 1) wherebythee'ntireassemblage of rollers maybe adjusted as to angle of inclination.Atthe lower freely swinging end of such assemblage, one or more screwor-other jacks areplaced in order to adjust' the' entire assemblageabout the pivots ST. This'jack'arrangement is shown more particularlyihFigure's' 1 and 6' in which arod 58 on the bed 35 oo operatjes'withfarod.49 mounted in the framework 56. A collar '5l' 'ro'tates'on the'rod48 and: carries a jack screw .52which' adapted to telescope. into asleeve'53, A nut. 54 feedsthe screw 52 into and out of the sleeve 53thus drawing down or pushing up'the lower free end of the rollerassemblage. iA' l-owercoll'ar carried by the sleeve 53 is swiveled onthe lower rod 49. V

A drain pan 55 is carried by the bottom frame 36, such pan 55 having ahull outlet 56 disposed below a trough 57. positioned to catch thepeeled meat as it emerges fromthe lower ends of the channels 25. e

The rollers' may be oscillated by any appropriate mechanism, forinstance the upper' set of rollers Ill-l5 may receive oscillatorymovement from frictional contact with the lower set. of rollers"l6-22w'hich' have grooved sheaves 6i aflixed thereto ortotheir shafts atthe high ends, endlessfcabl'es 62' being trained through the groovesofthe. sheaves 5| and affixed, asindicated mounted vfor reciprocation on astationary rod 64 "aifi'xe'd to the framework or the drain pan 55. Anarm 65 projects down from the sliding tube 63 and is piyotally'conneetedants toia link 6? pivoted at 68 to a rotary crank arm. Thiscrank arm 69is'driven through'the reduction'gear 16 from" the gear shaft'll througha belt and pulley transmission 12' from the motor shaft 13 andthe Anadjustment I5 (Figure ,1) controls the speed of the rollers and also ofthe feeder by meansof a vari-s'peed motor pulley. As shown in'Figure 5the gear shaft "ll has a pulley 'ldfixed upon its o'uter'end'from whichpower 'is'transmitted by a belt T tania and lower banks of rollers, suchrollers will'pref erabl'y'be provided with, ballforj'roller bearings, 19running upon a non-rota y Shaft which: may have a square or other'non-cireular enditi',

shaftjt of the feeder mechanism;

Referring more particularly to Figure 12,.fwhile it will be understoodthat any type or form of roller may be employed for either or both upperbearing '82. The bearings :82 are'nomrotatably .fittedii'nrsquare ior'non-circular op'enings through the' endirailsfof the uppercase Tas shownin'Figures 2 and'5. The bearings =82 are flanged over at"83"'ar-1d 8 lat "oppositesides of the rails 35 to maintainthe same iniplaceintherails. This arrangement will also prevent axial sliding movement of thesh'aft' 8! -Any desired feeder mechanism may be ern-.ployed-butpreferably-the mechanism shown more particularly in Figures 1and '3 in'which an end less-wire mesh conveyor 86 is'dis'posed on aninclinationin a ta'nk "81 having an inclined bottom 88, the higher endof which is disposed adjacent the'high'end 'of'the in'clined rollers.The conveyor 86 runs over 'a-high roller 89 and a low roller 90. i i

'I he tank -81 is provided with fresh water through an inlet pipe SI thewater being'maim 'ttained at a level 92'by means of'an overflow outletpipe 93. A clean-out valve 94 is provided near the lower inclined end ofthe tank 81. The lower hinged'b'ailie "95 is mounted on the tank walladjacentthe lower conveyor roller 95) and has its free end curved inthe'direction ofm'otion of the upper run of the conveyor 86 'and'restingthereupon. A second vertically adjustable baflle 96 is mountedapproximately at'the water level line 92 above an'interm'ediate partof'the upper run of the'conveyor 86,the same being carried bythe sidetank walls and made adjustable by nuts 91 or other appropriate means. I

Inthe'operation, the shrimp are dumped or shoveled'into the'water vat 3%which is open at the top for this purpose. Such shrimp are picked upbythe feeder belt 86 and carried upwardly therealong as indicated inFigure 1 by which they are dropped into the upper or high end of thepeeling machine. At this point they find their way into the inclinedchannels 25 and rest upon the lower rollers Ill-22 which, being givenanoscillatory motion by the driving mechanism, present the shrimpalternately to each of its two upper rollers. Thusthe shrimp are broughtalternately into contact with opposed crotches. As'the mutualperipheries of the two rollers constituting a crotch move downwardlytogether they squeeze and pinch :the shrimp forcing the meat 33 out ofthe hulls. The meat being slippery does not pass through the crotch.However the shells or hulls are caught by the peripheries of the rollersand having been evacuated of the meat are flattened and are thus subjectto passage through such crotches and into the discharge gaps 26 below.These hulls 34fallinto the drain pan 55 and are evacuated through thehull outlet 56.

Onthe reversal of rotation of any pair of rollers the shrimp is drivenback from the crotch, being carried by this reversal of rotation of thelower roller across to the opposite crotch. As

soon as the shrimp is released at onecrotch. and is beingtransferred tothe other crotch the shrimp advances down the channel 25' aided partlyby gravity and partly'by the flow of water received through the pipes 93(Figure 4) Water may be supplied to the pipes 98 by apump 99 driven bymotor I96 (Figure 5).

.As shown .in Figure 4 by the dotted lines the shrimp passes downthechannels'in a substantially zig-z'ag .manner alternately moving from onecrotch to an opposed crotch in accordance with the alternating movements'of the rollers. If not previously peeled at one crotch the shrimp isengaged again and again :as it. descends the.

.shafts crctches. This water flushes the removed-hulls away from therollers anddown into the drain pan. Italsotends 'to-keep the rollersfree of slime. The'fiushing-of Waterthrough the pipes 98 in the upperchannels 25 also .tendsto wash down the slime and keep the surfaces ofthe rollers clean and free from such slime. The rate of the travel ofthe shrimp down the channels 25 may be controlled by the volume andforce of the Water supplied through the pipes 98.

The adjustable baffle $36 is placed above the mesh conveyor tocontrolthe quantity of shrimp allowed to be advancedbythe belt to thepeeling machine. The lower edge of the'baffie 96 will always'be spacedabove the upper run of the mesh conveyor 86. A take-up roller IE4 isengaged with .a part of the conveyor 66, this roller being adjustableinthe'usual manner in order to keep the conveyorappropriately taut.

The nuts 39 may be tightened to'increase the tension between thelower'andthe upper rollers.- By running these upper nuts 39 down uponthe: rods 3?,the coil springs 4i are compressed thus urging the toproller frame and the rollers [84 5 journaled therein downwardly by theamount of this compression. This force is added to that.

of gravity. The lower nuts so are run downwardly away from the bottom ofthe top frame or corner braces 43 when the machine. is being used. Whenthe machine is no longer to be kept I6 and 22 are prevented from movingoutward by these adjustable stop bolts Ml acting against the stationaryroller shafts. These bolts 44 also permit adjustment to obtain variousspacing between the lower r-ollers. The upper rollers are held in placeby the tension between the upper and lower rollers.

The shafts of the lower rollers simply rest on the lower frame or bed.Only the central lower roller is locked in position against horizontalshifting in either direction.

The shafts of the upper rollers are 'slidably housed in partly closedchannel supporting .frames which permits the raising of the upperrollers to remove tension between the lower and upper rollers when themachine is not in use.

Referring more particularly to Figure 15 in which a modified form ofcase frame 35 is shown, such frame is shown to be of channel form closedon its inner side by walls 26 and 2&5 except forthe provision of ahorizontally elongated slot 283 formed between the edges of the innerwalls ZMand 205. The journals 23 of the upper roller Ill etc.", arerotatably and slidably mounted in the slot 203. When the top frame 35 islifted the top bank of rollers Ill etc., will be lifted from the frameas for instance when the nuts 40 of Figure 5 are run upwardly; and alsowhen the upper adjusting nuts 39 are removed from the threaded rods 31and the entire upper frame lifted to remove tension from the upper bankof rolls.

Referring to Figure 9, a form of bafiie adjustment is illustrated inwhich perforated lugs, I05 on the bafile 96 overhang the outside wallsof the vat 81 above external stationary abutments I08 inrwhich areafiixed the screws I06 having the nuts 91 and I81. By screwing down nutsIIlI theibafile 96 may be lowered and by screwing the nuts I01 up thebaffle 96 israised. Nuts 91 act as lock nuts to secure the adjustmentonce made. Any other form of adjusting device may be employed.

Referring more particularly to Figure 10, a modification is shown inwhich the cable drive is replaced by a rack and pinions to furnish thesame oscillating motion to the rollers. The rack I I meshes with pinionsII I afiixed to the upper ends of the lower rollers IBa, Ila, I8a, I912,20a, 2Ia and 22a. The rack III! meshes with these pinions II on thelower sides. The rack H9 is affixed to the arm 65a which receives areciprocating motion from the link 67a and from the rotary crank 69a.

For economic reasons and to obtain added capacity from the machine twoend rollers H2 and H3 (Figure 10) have been added to the upper bank ofrollers. These two, additional rollers H2 and H3 give two additionalchannels without adding any further rollers to the lower bank.

Our experiments have shown that best performance ,is secured where allof the lower rollers Ilia-22a. are fixed as far as lateral movement isconcerned. In Figure 5 only the central lower roller I9 is fixed.However in Figure 10 all of the lower rollers are fixed againstanyhorizontal relative movement.

Our experiments likewise have shown it desirable to install idlerrollers H4 above each of the channels as shown in Figures 10 and 11. InFigure 13 these idler rollers H4 are shown as shorter than the operatingrollers but of sufiicient length to provide open mouths at the upperhigh ends of the roller banks to allow the shrimp to enter the channels.The object of these idler rollers I I4 is to permit the use of a greatervolume of water under great force from above so as to accomplish themore thorough cleansing of the rollers, thereby permitting more precisepeeling. These idler rollers I I l, which are relatively small indiameter ride on the upper arcs of the rollers of the upper bank asshown in Figures 10, 11 and 13.

Referring more particularly to Figure 12, one

of the rollers I9 is shown as representative of the rollers of bothupper and lower banks, this roller having a covering I I5 of rubber orthe like which we find at the present time the best surfacing for therollers as the same relates to the shrimp peeling operation.

Referring more particularly to Figure 14, a

modified form of baille 91a is shown in the feeder:

tank as oscillating upon trunnions H6 which project out intermediate theends of the baille to permit such baiile to execute an oscillatingmotion. In effect the baille is a paddle and moves in asmall are whichcreates a wave motion, which in turn delivers the shrimp moreefiicierrtly onto, the moving conveyor 86: This paddle may secure itspower from an independent motor or from the peeler power unit, In Figure14,-, a motor I I1 drives a speed reducer ,I I8 and a pump H9. Thespeedreducer rotates the crank I20, for instance at R. P. M. in a circleof approxi-- mately five inch diameter. The crank reciprocates a pitmanI2I which is connected, to an arm I22 having ahorizontal extension I23aflixed along the upper edge of the paddle 91a. An adjustment, I24provides forrshifting the pivotal connection I25 between the pitman andarm so as to change the effective leverage orradius of operation,

.It. is..obvio11s,that, various changes and modi ficationsmay be made inthe detailsof construe: tion and design of the above specificallydescribed embodiment of this invention without departing from the spiritthereof, such, changes and modifications being restricted only by thescope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a shrimp peeling machine, a unit are rangement of three axiallyinclined oscillating rollers with two of the rollers spaced apart andwith the third roller, disposed below such space and forming. crotcheswith the spaced rollers, the assembly thus forming a channel to whichraw shrimp may be fed for peeling.

2. In a shrimp peeling machine, a vunit arrangement of two rollers withtheir axes inclined and a crotch between the rollers adapted to peelshrimp, and means for. oscillating said rollers.

3. In a shrimp peeling machine, a unit arrangement of three rollers, twoof said rollers constituting an upper pair and being spaced apart in asubstantially horizontal sense, the third single lower roller beingdisposed belowthe space between the upper rollers and forming with suchupper rollers two spaced crotches for the peeling of the shrimp, saidrollers being axially inclined and having a higher receiving end forshrimp and a lower discharge end, and means for oscillating said rollersin such wise that the peripheries of the crotch portions move togetherin the same directions with alternation of direction in the opposedcrotches.

4. A shrimp, peeling machine as claimed in claim 3, wherein means areprovided to deliver a current of water in a channel defined by the threerollers to assist. the shrimp in moving gravitationally from the higherto the lower ends of the rollers. Y

5. In a shrimp peeling machine, a unitary arrangement of three rollersaxially inclined from a high receiving to a lowdischarge end and withthe axes of the rollers in a relative triangular relation with the basedisposed upwardly and the apex downwardly and with the two upper rollersspaced apart substantially horizontally and contacting side portions ofthe lower apex roller to form an inclined channel between the threerollers, means to deliver shrimp to the high end.

of the rollers,.a receiver for the shrimp atthe lower ends of therollers, and means to oscillate a substantially zig-zag path as requiredby the oscillatory movement of such rollers.

7. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 5 characterized by thefact that the unitary arrangement is mounted for pivoting movement inthe frame of the machine, and means are provided for adjusting suchunitary arrangement to change the angle of inclination of such rollers.

8. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim in which the unitaryarrangement of rollers is pivoted at its upper portion in the frame ofthe machine, and screw jacks are disposed beneath the unitaryarrangement at the low portion thereof to raise or lower such lowportion and rotate the unitary arrangement about the framework in orderto vary the inclination of the rollers to the horizontal.

9. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 5 wherein a bed isprovided for the loose journalling of the lower rollers and a frameabove such bed in which are journalled the upper rollers, with means toyieldingly press the frame down upon such bed.

10. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 5 in which means areprovided for taking up the axial thrust of said rollers andsubstantially preventing lateral movement thereof.

11. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 5 in which the meansfor oscillating the rollers comprise a grooved drum, a cable trainedfrictionally through said drum, and means for imparting a reciprocatingmovement to said cable.

12. An improved shrimp peeling machine comprising upper and lowerrollers arranged on an axial inclination and having a channeltherebetween, means for oscillating said rollers, means for supplyingwater to the channels at the upper portion thereof, means for receivingthe peeled meat from the lower end portions of the channels, a drain panbelow the rollers for receiving the hulls, said drain pan having a hulloutlet.

13. An improved shrimp peeling machine comprising upper and lowerrollers set on an axial inclination and having a channel therebetweenfor receiving shrimp, means for oscillating said rollers comprisingsheaves affixed to said rollers, a cable running over said sheaves, areciprocating cross head connected to said cable, and means for movingsaid cross head back and forth.

14. An improved shrimp peeling machine comprising an upper set ofcylindrical rollers having channels for the shrimp therebetween, a lowerset of cylindrical rollers placed beneath said channels, the rollersbeing set on an axial inclination, an upper frame in which the upperrollers are journaled, a lower frame in which the lower rollers arejournaled, threaded tension rods passing freely through the upper frameand pivoted to the lower frame, coil springs on the rods resting on theupper part of the upper frame, upper nuts threaded on the rods above thecontacting and extending laterally beyond the two end rollers of theupper bank, and adjustable means to prevent spreading of said endrollers and to adjust the same horizontally.

16. An improved shrimp peeling machine comprising upper and lowerinclined frames, an upper bank of rollers journaled in the upper framein horizontally spaced relation, a bank of lower rollers freely mountedupon the lower frame to move horizontally toward and from one anotherwith the exception of the center roller which is fixed, the upperrollers bearing upon two lower rollers, and means to engage the endrollers of the lower bank to prevent the lateral spreading of theserollers due to the incumbent weight of the upper frame and upper bankand to adjust the gaps between the lower rollers, and means foroscillating said rollers.

17. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 1, wherein means areprovided to deliver a stream of water against the undersides of therollers to flush the shrimp hulls from the same.

18. A shrimp peeling machine according to claim 1 in which a rack andpinion drive is employed for the lower roller, the upper rollersderiving drive from contact with the lower roller.

19. A shrimp peeling machine as claimed in claim 1 in which an idlerroller closes the upper portion of said channel.

FERNAND S. LAPEYRE. JAMES M. LAPEYRE, III

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 311,199 Moulton Jan. 27, 18851,011,378 Shaffer Dec. 12, 1911 1,852,405 Farley Apr. 5, 1932 2,109,703Maiers Mar. 1, 1938 2,147,633 Bottker Feb. 21, 1939 2,263,697 GraysonNov. 25, 1941 2,380,264 Richardson July 10, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS NumberCountry Date 27,351 Norway Oct. 16, 1916

